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Notch has already seriously cut into our sleeping time simply by creating Minecraft, but with this new, horrific mob we'll be lucky if we sleep one wink per week. Notch's "Endermen" were designed specifically to creep players out -- to not only be scary, but to be gut-twisting terrifying. In his blog post, "The psychology of the reticle and the feeling of control," Notch describes how he created the Endermen and what they will do to raise your heart rate:

"Suddenly you could walk up to these looking beasts (they're three meters tall) and watch them as they moved their blocks around, but as soon as you happened to look straight at them, they'd attack. And by 'straight at them', I mean putting the reticle on top of them. You can keep them visible on screen and actually look straight at them in real life, but as soon as your in game character looks straight at them, boom.

"Still, that was more scary than creepy.... I wanted something a bit more psychological. So to really drive home the point of looking at them being bad, I made the Endermen freeze and turn towards you when you look at them. As long as you look straight at them, they stand perfectly still and look straight at you. As soon as you look away, they will run (very fast) towards you.

"And they teleport."

The Endermen will begin stalking Minecraft with the Adventure Update, but if you can't wait, check out the inspiration for the creatures' name, Slender Man.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>adventure-updateendermenMinecraftmobpcslender-manSat, 30 Jul 2011 19:30:00 ESThttp://www.joystiq.com/2006/12/18/cnn-gets-police-escort-to-escape-wii-craving-mob/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/12/18/cnn-gets-police-escort-to-escape-wii-craving-mob/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/12/18/cnn-gets-police-escort-to-escape-wii-craving-mob/#commentsFiled under: Culture, Nintendo WiiCNN staffer Krysten Peek experienced firsthand how fanboy desperation can quickly devolve into mob-like assault. Peek was one of the (seemingly) lucky few to score a Wii during this past weekend's re-up, but on her way to the store's exit -- just after an employee announced that all units were sold-out -- she became an easy target for the lingering crowd of Wii-less shoppers:"Were these people crazy?? Yes, they were ... unsatisfied customers began to grab at my bag ... I was caught off guard in a game of tug-a-war when a security guard intervened and rescued me from the chaos. He took me outside. And the crowd followed."

It wasn't until security flagged down a cop car and tucked Peek inside that the CNN hand escaped certain danger. Or so it would seem. Now they know her name. How long before they discover where Ms. Peek lives?

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>CNNFanboyMobWiiMon, 18 Dec 2006 13:29:00 ESThttp://www.joystiq.com/2006/06/08/federal-judge-caught-playing-solitaire-during-a-trial/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/06/08/federal-judge-caught-playing-solitaire-during-a-trial/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/06/08/federal-judge-caught-playing-solitaire-during-a-trial/#commentsFiled under: Culture, PCWe'll abstain from the card-related puns. On last Saturday, the New York Daily News reported that Manhattan Federal Court Judge Shira Scheindlin, was busy playing computer solitaire while overseeing the case against John "Junior" Gotti.

The allegation comes from radio host Curtis Silwa, who noticed her gaming habits while testifying on the witness stand. Silwa was almost killed at a 1992 shooting that Gotti is accused of planning. Silwa said he has seen Scheindlin gaming during the last two trials, but did not speak up "until Scheindlin dumped cold water on the government's third try" to convict the mobster.

Silwa is asking that Scheindlin should step down from the case. Mayor Bloomberg in February fired a low-paid office worker after spying a game of Solitaire left on the person's desktop. It'll be interesting to see how a high-paid judge with political clout is reprimanded (if at all) for her in-trial shenanigans.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>federal courtFederalCourtlegal systemLegalSystemmobPCsolitaireThu, 08 Jun 2006 15:25:00 ESThttp://www.joystiq.com/2006/03/13/should-the-sopranos-video-game-be-whacked/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/03/13/should-the-sopranos-video-game-be-whacked/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/03/13/should-the-sopranos-video-game-be-whacked/#commentsI couldn't watch the season premiere of everyone's favorite New Jersey family drama last night without wondering
what the fanook happened to the Sopranos video game that THQ was supposedly working on last May.
Now that EA's take on the Godfather is closing in on a release date, Tony and the Bada Bing crew would appear
due for a console adaptation. Despite the superior quality of the show, David Chase and HBO haven't exactly been
snobbish with this license, hawking Sopranos-branded cookbooks and pool cues as if they owed money to the mob. On the
plus side, that could mean Chase won't reflexively look down on video games as an art form like Francis Ford Coppola apparently does. It also means we could end up with a Max
Payne-ish Tony doing slow-mo dodge rolls on his way to the pork store. To truly be worth while, a Sopranos
game would have to not only have the total cooperation of the writers and cast, but also capture the psychological
depth and richness of the best show on TV. What that means for the gameplay, I'm not sure-something leaning
towards strategy as opposed to mission-based runs to Satriale's.

I'm going to assume we haven't heard
anything about this project because the creative geniuses behind it are waiting until they can devote their full
attention toward whacking gamers with a whole new level of licensed next-gen experience. Anything less, and I'd prefer
Tony sleeps with the fishes when it comes to the 360.

What's the best way to turn the Sopranos
into a console game? And while we're strip-mining HBO for material, who should buy the rights to Deadwood?